Let’s face it, the buzz around AI in education has sent shivers down many a spine, often accompanied by cries of “The sky is falling! Cheating is out of control!” But hold your horses, fellow educators, because a recent ISTE ASCD webinar with Dr. Victor Lee and Richard Culatta dropped some truth bombs that might make you rethink the whole “AI-caused-the-cheating-apocalypse” narrative.
Turns out, cheating isn’t a new phenomenon, nor is it AI’s fault. Dr. Lee’s research revealed that student cheating rates have been pretty consistent for decades—we’re talking a steady 60-80%—long before ChatGPT even dreamed of writing your grocery list. So, while we’re suddenly hyper-aware of academic integrity (which, hey, is a good thing!), it seems AI is more of a convenient scapegoat than the root cause.
And those fancy AI detectors? Yeah, they’re basically digital snake oil. Richard Culatta shared a hilarious (and slightly terrifying) anecdote about a professor who flunked an entire class based on an AI detector, only for a student to run the professor’s own dissertation through it… and guess what? It flagged that as AI-generated too. So, let’s ditch the fantasy of catching digital culprits with these unreliable tools.
Beyond the Blame Game: What’s Really Going On?
The webinar highlighted that the real issue isn’t AI, but often the underlying reasons why students cheat. Think about it: if the content feels irrelevant, if students have no say in how they demonstrate their learning, or if they just feel disconnected from the whole process, a quick shortcut becomes mighty tempting. It’s a bit like asking someone to enthusiastically run a race they didn’t sign up for, with no clear finish line or reward.
And let’s not forget the difference between college and K-12. As Dr. Lee pointed out, the stakes and environment are vastly different. A high school student who sees their teacher daily has a different dynamic than a college student in a 300-person lecture where one final paper is everything.
Fixing the System, Not Just the Symptoms
So, if AI isn’t the problem, and those detectors are a bust, what’s an educator to do? The answer, surprisingly, is to focus on creating genuinely better learning experiences.
- Ditch the “AI-proofing” mindset for authentic assessments. Instead of trying to outsmart the bots, let’s design assignments that AI can’t do for a student—tasks that require critical thinking, personal reflection, creativity, and real-world application. Think of AI as a powerful dump truck that can haul a lot of rocks (like formatting or basic research), but your students’ brains are the sports cars, designed for nuanced, complex, and personally driven journeys.
- Involve students in setting the rules. Imagine the shock and awe if we actually talked with students about academic integrity and appropriate AI use. When they have a voice in shaping the norms, they’re far more likely to buy into them. This also brings out the hilarious ironies, like a teacher banning AI for grammar checks while simultaneously offering a human-staffed writing center that does the exact same thing. The students aren’t dumb, folks!
- Teach AI literacy. This isn’t just about using AI; it’s about understanding its capabilities and its limitations. Let’s show students how AI can be a brilliant brainstorming partner, a tireless tutor, or a fantastic visual generator. But also, teach them when to question it, when it’s prone to misinformation, and when their unique human insight is irreplaceable.
- Give teachers time and space. Implementing these changes isn’t a snap of the fingers. As Carmelita Seitz rightly emphasized, educators need the time, resources, and freedom to experiment, learn, and even fail (gasp!) as they integrate AI thoughtfully into their classrooms.
Ultimately, this “cheating myth” around AI is forcing us to confront something we probably should have addressed years ago: are our assessments actually good? If AI can easily complete a task, maybe that task wasn’t truly assessing deep learning in the first place. This is our moment to build assessments that are meaningful, engaging, and truly prepare students for a world where AI is a tool, not a threat.
What are your thoughts? How are you leveraging AI to create more authentic learning experiences in your classroom?
